Walter Gilbert. Works

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WALTER HENRY GILBERT (1871-1946)

by Harry Kossuth M.A. Oxon

LIFE

Walter Gilbert was a designer and modeller, mainly in metalwork, for firms whosemanufactures embraced architectural sculpture (see appendix for a definition).Finding its genesis in the Arts and Crafts movement and the formation of artistsinto Guilds who worked anonymously on large projects such as churches, Gilbertdeveloped a role whereby he would obtain commissions, present the patron withan idea which usually involved some research, and then have the idea executed bya more talented practitioner. This involved collaboration formerly with LouisWeingartner (initially under the auspices of the Bromsgrove Guild) and latterlywith his son Donald Gilbert, with whom he worked for H.H. Martyn of Cheltenham.Walter would liaise with technicians and maintain a hands-on involvement in theexecution of the work; and, as front-man, often tacitly assume credit for thefinished product.

We know only the barest facts of his personal life: he was born in Rugby on 12August 1871, son of Henry Edward Gilbert and Jane Isabella Gilbert. He marriedIna MacGeoch and they had one son Donald and one daughter Margot. Bothchildren were encouraged to take up art as a career and in the 1920's father andboth children were to collaborate on the interior decoration of the "SS QueenMary". It is generally supposed that he was the cousin of Alfred Gilbert, famed asthe designer of "Eros", for whom he arranged a "come-back" in the late 1920's.

Walter studied art at the Birmingham Municipal Art School, in South Kensington,and in France, Belgium and Germany. He is reputed to have taught art in Rugby

and Harrow Schools, and in c. 1890 he became Master of Fine Arts at BromsgroveSchool in Worcestershire. Local legend says that he set up the Bromsgrove Guild,an association of industrial artists, after quarrelling with the Headmaster. (Oneof the foundry-workers, George Cowper, recalls an outing given by the Guild, toHolt Fleet, in 1907. On this occasion, Gilbert, in a speech, stated that the firm hadbeen in existence for only twelve and a half years, and that they had done "prettywell." This dates the founding of the Guild c. 1894.) He continued with one day aweek teaching at the School of Art in Birmingham and three evening classes at theSchool of Science and Art in Bromsgrove.

After 1903 Gilbert's principal works in metal were designed in conjunction with theSwiss modeller Louis Weingartner, about whom almost nothing is known exceptthat he died in 1934 in his native Switzerland not long after his retirement from

working with Gilbert. He had been a jeweller at the School of Art in Birmingham,and moved to Bromsgrove c. 1903 as principal executant of small-scale castings.When the plaster-worker George Bankart left the Bromsgrove Guild in 1908 toestablish himself in London, Gilbert took over the design and modelling in thisfield. But new commercial opportunities presented themselves in 1918 when heentered into agreement with H.H. Martyn and Co. Ltd. of Cheltenham on the12 th October (while still living in Birmingham). Under this arrangement he becameassistant manager of the company for five years. Within one month he was madeart managing director, but without a seat on the board. There was a possibility of


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travel to the U.S.A. if the company were to extend its interests across the Atlantic.His duties were to obtain orders, see clients, advise on pricing and supervise allwork secured by him and carried out in the company's studios. At the same timeGilbert managed to "poach" the metal casting expert Arnold Edwards from theBromsgrove Guild. Edwards joined H.H. Martyn in 1919. He remained foundrymanager throughout the period 1920-1938, when Martyn's cast 75% of all artmetal in the U.K., their main rivals being the Bromsgrove Guild, the BirminghamGuild, and Singers of Frome.

Somewhat surprisingly Gilbert was only ejected from the company of hisBromsgrove employers in 1922 when it became apparent that he was using hisGuild expenses to obtain orders for Martyns. News of the commissions for the newGothic-style Anglican cathedral in Liverpool probably brought this to a head,although Gilbert was almost certainly instrumental in obtaining the elaboratemetal chancel gates (designed by Gilbert Scott) for Bromsgrove. Gilbert continuedto operate independently in association with Weingartner from 62-66 WeamanStreet, Birmingham. It was with Weingartner that he executed the great reredos ofLiverpool Cathedral, which was mechanically cut from original clay models bystone-carvers at Martyn's. The Bromsgrove Guild had, in fact, lost their stone-

carver Weiss on the "Titanic" in 1912 and the new relationship between Gilbertand Martyn's may have been instigated by the advent of the Liverpool reredoscommission. Walter was a member of a Masonic Lodge in Birmingham and nodoubt was able to use this connection to obtain commissions. After Weingartnersretirement in 1930 and much of the modelling work for commissions secured byGilbert was taken over by his son Donald, himself an accomplished artist in thenew Art Deco style.

Walter retired in 1940 when Martyn's was taken over by Maples. He died on 23 January 1946 at Littlehampton, Sussex. His son Donald carved a memorial to hisfather and Louis Weingartner in Hanbury Church, Worcestershire, where thefamily had lived during Walters association with the Bromsgrove Guild. Thechurch also contains two large plaster-cast made from the clay reliefs modelled forthe Liverpool Cathedral reredos.

In a promotional booklet probably written c.1938 by Gilbert himself, it says that hewas "a pupil of Benjamin Creswick, who was Ruskin's favourite pupil, trained byhim in sculpture to be the Professor of his school of Sculpture at Keswick. Thefoundation of Ruskin's teaching, which has in turn has become the foundation ofGilbert's, was to study the work of the old artists, try to probe the secrets of theirminds, and find the way they fitted their work to its surroundings and the storythey desired to tell. So, while (he) has worked in various schools and taught inmany of them, it is from the study of sculpture on the actual buildings of the pastin Europe, India and elsewhere, and from the infinite painstaking study in themuseums that he has developed the romanticism of his outlook and the fitting ofdecoration to surroundings." ("A Description of the New Headquarters for theAnglo-American Corporation of South Africa Limited, 44 Main Street,

Johannesburg".)

LOUIS WEINGARTNER (Died 1934). Chief modeller. From Lake Lucerne inSwitzerland. Jeweller at the School of Art in Birmingham. Weingartner moved toBromsgrove c.1903 as principal executant of small-scale castings. He left theBromsgrove Guild with Gilbert c. 1921. He returned to Lucerne in Switzerland in1930 where he died shortly afterwards.


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HUBERT DONALD MACGEOCH GILBERT (1900-1961). The talented on of Walter,Donald was born in Burcot, Worcs. on 29th November 1900. He was educated atRugby School and subsequently studied at the Birmingham Central School of Art,the Royal College of Art and the Royal Academy, Rome, and Florence. A Royal

Academy silver and bronze medallist, he was highly commended in Prix de Romefinal competition (1927). He achieved R.B.S.A. in 1937. He exhibited at RoyalSociety of Artists Birmingham, Glasgow Institute of Fine Art, Walker GalleryLiverpool, Royal Academy, Royal Hibernian Academy, Royal Scottish Academy,Chenil Galleries. Principal works: animal and decorative sculpture. He designedmany wares for the Denby pottery. See "The Architectural Review" Vol. 74. 1933. p.38. ill. 47. Caption: "Epic Ware. Articles for oven and table use. They are myrtlegreen outside and cream inside. Designer: Donald Gilbert." Designed for BourneDenby and made at Ashtead Potters Ltd: a series of five figures were designedbased on characters from Rudyard Kipling's "Jungle Book": Barghera (panther),Baloo (bear), Arkela (she-wolf), Kaa (snake) and Mowgli (man-child). AlsoBourne Denby Danesby ware: eg. Pelican. The figures are finished in a pearlbarley glaze and stand 13.5 cms tall. He also produced portrait busts: his works

include busts of John Logie Baird (on display in the National Portrait Gallery,London; bronze, 1943) and Edward Elgar at the Guildhall, Worcester. HartleburyMuseum has a bust of Walter executed by him. His principal sculptural work is acarving for the Adelphi Building in London. See also: a painted plaster maquette ofa recumbent bear, signed and indistinctly dated (19)34?, 20.5cm high, 24cm wide;and a George VI and Queen Elizabeth coronation medallion, 1937, the obversedesigned by Donald Gilbert, the reverse by Walter Gilbert, monogrammedrespectively, 57mm diameter.

ARNOLD EDWARDS. Formerly with the Bromsgrove Guild, Edwards joined H.H.Martyn at Gilbert's instigation in 1919. Edwards remained foundry managerthroughout the period 1920-1938, when Martyn's cast 75% of all art metal in theU.K. (Their main rivals were the Bromsgrove Guild, the Birmingham Guild, andSingers of Frome.) Gloucester Records Office (D6345 bundle 1/1) has a letterdated 25.01.1920 from Gilbert to Edwards as follows: "Dear Mr. Edwards,Confirming my conversation with you of this morning I on behalf of this firmaccept the proposals in your letter of the 12th inst. The engagement of yourservices with the firm of H.H. Martyn & Co. Ltd. to commence not later than in sixweeks time. I am looking forward with great pleasure to your working with me inthe Development of a Foundry in Cheltenham. I shall do my best to make youhappy in your work."

KINETON PARKES (1865-1938). Educated Mason College, Birmingham.Publications: "Sculpture of Today", 2 vols. 1921; "The Art of Carved Sculpture", 2vols. 1931. Contributor to "Architectural Review", "Studio", "Apollo", "Queen", etc.

Article in "The Architectural Review": "The Great Reredos of Liverpool Cathedral"Vol. 56, Aug. 1924, pp. 74-77. Introduction (3 pages) by Parkes in "Sculpture inthe Garden". Privately published, printed by G.E. Over, Rugby. Preface by Gilbert.


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WORKS IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER

EARLY WORKS

1. LIVERPOOL. HANGING LAMPS at the Unitarian Memorial Church, Liscard,Wallasey. c.1899.

2. VIENNA. CORONA LIGHT-FITTING exhibited at the Paris Exhibition in 1900.Now in the Osterreichisches Museum fur Angewande Kunst.

WORKS IN ASSOCIATION WITH LOUIS WEINGARTNER AND THEBROMSGROVE GUILD

3. CARTOUCHES OF THE ROYAL COATS OF ARMS and LAMPS on BuckinghamPalace Gates, London; THE GREAT GATES OF CANADA and THE AUSTRALIANSCREENS adjacent to the Victoria Memorial, London. Architect Aston Webb.1906-11.

4. MORETON HALL, MORETON MORRELL, WARWICKSHIRE (?). CENTAURHANDRAIL. c. 1906. Destroyed by fire 2008 (?). See Gilbert's own drawing on p. 4of "Romance in Metal Work" ("Journal of the Royal Institute of British Architects",

Third Series, Vol. XIII, No. 6). In the article, Gilbert wrote, "The perfect work of artis always the result of some emotional mood, and . . . it was something of thisemotion which caused me when designing a hand-rail for a small flight of marblesteps for one of the most distinguished members of your profession to place acentaur in one volute hurling stones up the steps at a dryad peeping out of theopposite volute, remembering the days of my youth and the frequent use we made

of books at school. It is a trivial thing, but an artist's amusement." In fact, this wasalmost certainly executed by Weingartner from a design by Gilbert. Weingartnerspecialised in the kind of rococo classicism, full of charm and sentiment, found inthe embellishments on Buckingham Palace gates.

5. LONDON. LIFT ENCLOSURE in the British Museum Edward VII extension. c.1907. These are still in place, and the royal coats of arms are in a more severestyle than at the Palace Gates, and therefore not by Weingartner.


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6. ENRICHMENTS FOR LYONS'S RESTAURANTS. Plaster enrichments in one ofLyons's Restaurants at the Franco-British Exhibition, Shepherd's Bush, London.Presumed destroyed.

7. THE MUSIC OF THE SEA AND OF THE WINDS. Plaster enrichment in theMusic Room of the Cunard liner "SS Lusitania". Destroyed.

8. AMORINI UPSETTING THE EMBLEMS OF TIME. Plaster enrichment in theLounge of the Cunard "SS Lusitania". Destroyed. Gilbert wrote: "The Lounge is theresort of daintily-dressed women: the playful tricks of the Amorini upsetting theemblems of time, represented by the signs of the Zodiac, are a delicate satire ontheir womanly caprices. Destroyed. The subservience of women is to be seen laterin the Burnley and Eccleston Park war memorials.

9. LIVERPOOL. HARVEST. Plasterwork in the smoke-room of "The Vines" PublicHouse, Lime Street, Liverpool. Still in place.

10. MORETON HALL, MORETON MORRELL, WARWICKSHIRE (?). FRIEZE OF THE GODDESSES. Destroyed by fire in 2008 (?). Plaster decoration in a Dining-Room.

KANSAS CITY. PAN AND THE NYMPHS. Formerly in lead at Moreton Paddox,Kineton, Warwickshire. First re-located in East 47th Street, Kansas City, 753-3345, U.S.A. this 10,000-pound lead sculpture was purchased by the Nichols


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Company in 1960 and found its current home in 1969. In the centre of ChandlerCourt 4701 Wyandotte Street near the Swanson's building on the Plaza.

The CONTEMPORARY sculpture critic Kineton Parkes wrote ". . . in the lead groupof Pan and the Nymphs I see virility and imagination. This latter is conceived inthe Versailles spirit, but it includes a later and more real feeling. It is anexceptional work made for Major Robert Emmet of Moreton Paddox, Kineton,Warwickshire. It is a noble group which has little to rival it in modern Englishgarden sculpture. Its authors have gone far beyond the craftsmanship, which isusually and mistakenly accepted in such work, into the realm of pure art." (pp. 8-9of Introduction to "Sculpture in the Garden") Gilbert's own caption (on p. 4 of"Sculpture in the Garden") runs: "Pan the great god of the countryside (theatmosphere) being courted by the Nymphs of the Gardens, the Orchards, theStreams and the Woods. Pan looks down rather cynically because he knows thatthe nymphs do not always fulfil their promises. The gardens do not always flower,the streams run dry, the orchards bear no fruits and the trees without shade." Hiscaption to the illustrated detail was (p. 14): "The Naiad with the merbabyscrambling after the frog. The water which feeds the lake comes from the crevicethe nymph is opening." (on p. 4 of "Sculpture in the Garden"). On the back of acontemporary photo with a boy (Donald Gilberts son Walter?) posing before the

group there is a handwritten note: "14 ft. long, 13 ft. high, 9 ft. 9 in. wide." A noteon a press cutting at Hartlebury Castle Museum in Worcestershire (no date - dresssuggests e. 1950's) reads: "This lead group fetched 1,025 at sale."

KANSAS CITY. "NEPTUNE AND HIS HORSES". Currently located in 308 West 47thStreet/Wornall Road, Kansas City, MO 753-3345, U.S.A. This 8,000 pound castlead fountain, placed in an oval pool, depicts Neptune. The god of the sea moves inhis chariot pulled by three mythological sea horses. It was cast in lead originallyfor the entrance of a grotto in the grounds of the residence of Alba B. Johnsonesq., President, Baldwin Locomotive works, Philadelphia U.S.A. Diameter of Group:5ft. 6ins. Miller Nichols purchased the 8,000-pound cast lead fountain for itsweight in scrap metal. It was found on the top of a train car full of scrap metal byworkmen at a salvage company and installed installed in in its present location inthe 1950's.

13. MORETON MORRELL, STRATFORD. "DIANA AND THE LOVES". Lead. In itsoriginal location, now the Warwickshire College of Agriculture. Diameter 8 ft. (TheGrade II listed house was built in 1907-08 by a rich American, Charles TullerGarland, son of the co-founder of National City Bank in New York. It was designedfor lavish entertaining, with sumptuous plasterwork, particularly in the barrel-vault-ed great hall, library and dining room. As a result of a fire in March 2008,Almost all the interiors appear to have been lost, including a handsome 18th-century-style staircase with wrought-iron balustrade.) Gilbert's own caption says:"Diana, the virgin goddess, exhausted by the chase, has fallen behind the fir tree(the emblem of chastity) and is imploring the water spouting from the tree to hideher from the Loves pursuing her and pelting her with flowers." ("Sculpture in theGarden" p.18)

14. LONDON. BATTLE OF JUTLAND MEDAL. For the Battle of Jutland, 1916,struck bronze, 76 mm., British Museum. Date made:1916. Materials: bronzesilver frosted. Measurements: Overall: 76 mm. (in the collection of the NationalMaritime Museum, Greenwich, London among commemorative medals).Description: obverse: Jugate busts of Admirals Jellicoe and Beatty (three-quarter


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right), wearing full dress uniform. A laurel branch covers the lower portion.Legend: 'RESOLUTE IN ACTION JUTLAND MAY 31-JUNE I . 1916'. Reverse:Inscription (within laurel wreath), 'THE GERMAN . HIGH-SEA . FLEET HELDAGAINST . ODDS TILL . ROUTED BY . INVINCIBLE MIGHT'. Legend (circular):'STRUCK . UNDER . THE . AUSPICES . OF . THE . ROYAL . NUMISMATIC .SOCIETY . 1916 . AE . PRESIDENT.' Produced in response to a competitionconceived by Sir Arthur Evans for a medal to commemorate the Battle of Jutlandof 1916, Gilbert designed the obverse around the busts of Admirals Jellicoe andBeatty; the reverse is by Charles Wheeler. Gilbert's medal came third. The RoyalNumismatic Society arranged for the three winning models to be struck in bronze.

15. WORKSOP. GRIEVING MOTHER, Welbeck Abbey. Chapel of Welbeck College,Worksop, Nottinghamshire. On west wall of north entrance. Plaque, aprox. 2 feethigh and 3 feet 6 ins. wide. Small relief panel (aprox. 9 ins. by 8 ins.) top centre: amother, dolphins at feet, being presented with the arms of her dead son. Asemi-nude female figure is on the left with sword and palm; a semi-nude malefigure on the right with shield and laurel; the "mother" carries a helmet in her righthand. Laurel decoration on two outer side edges of main plaque; inner bordersixteen regimental badges interspaced with fir and cones.

16. WORKSOP. MOURNING KNIGHT, Welbeck Abbey. Chapel of Welbeck College,Worksop, Nottinghamshire. On west wall of baptistry. Plaque, aprox. 9 in. wide 10in. high. Knight on horseback laying wreath with lance. Coat of arms underneath,surrounded by first Names of three members of the Bentinck family (ie. owners ofthe original House). Three regimental badges.

17. LOCATION UNKNOWN (BIRMINGHAM?). BIRMINGHAM CONSERVATIVECLUB WAR MEMORIAL, Formerly located in Temple Row. The two plaques were inwhat became "The Birmingham Club Ltd.", 2nd Floor, Winston Churchill House, 8Ethel Street, Birmingham, but this Club has now closed and the work has beenremoved. One plaque has a figure of Britannia unsheathing a sword, the other afigure of St. George standing on a dragon.

18. NEWCASTLE. MEMORIAL FOR JESMOND DENE, Jesmond United ReformedChurch, Burdon terrace, Newcastle. Whitaker p. 302: "The figures are symbolical,delicately sculptured and expertly cast in the round, each one a work of art in itsown right, from the mother holding her child in her lap to the soldier in attentivestance, looking towards Christ on the Cross . .


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19. LOCATION UNKNOWN. "MEMORIAL TO AN AIRMAN". The back of a photo ofthe original clay model signed by Gilbert has the captions: "Memorial to a youngAmerican who joined the Air Force". "I will take the wings of the morning and gointo the uppermost parts of the air". "The aeroplane leaving the earth". It is notknown whether this proposal ever got past the clay model stage.

WORKS IN ASSOCIATION WITH LOUIS WEINGARTNER AND MARTYNS OFCHELTENHAM

20. BIRMINGHAM(?). BIRMINGHAM CORPORATION GAS OFFICE WARMEMORIAL . Bronze figure on a pedestal of Hopton marble. Statue height 140cms., overall 360 cms. (11 ft.). The cenotaph memorial is crowned by an allegoricalfigure representing Britannia similar in form to Phidias' well known design ofAthena Parthenos c. 447-439. Formerly in the Entrance Hall of the CouncilHouse Extension ("Gas Hall"), Chamberlain Square, Birmingham. The Gas Hallunderwent a refurbishment in 1992 and the memorial was "reclaimed" by BritishGas in 1991. The proposed plan for its re-location was scrapped, and it was placed

in store at the Works of Guild Masonry Ltd. Tyseley, Birmingham, with the Victoryand fir branch at the Office in Hall Green. It was then subsequently stolen. Adescription and clear close-up photo of the statue in situ is in the programme forthe unveiling ceremony on 19 November 1921 (in Birmingham Reference Library).Explaining his monument Gilbert wrote: "The figure proposed is Britannia holdingthe (little Nike or) Victory, for the British troops, seamen and soldiers broughtvictory to the Allied Armies, and in the other arm she carries the alms of victoryand the rosary of remembrance." (Birmingham Gas Department Magazine, Vol.IX No. 5 May 1920, p. 72). In the leaflet produced for the unveiling ceremony in1921 it was further noted: "The Britannia is designed in a slight and delicatelymodelled form, after the style of the Tanagra figures, which were the choicehousehold possessions of the Greeks in their greatest period of appreciation ofsculpture. The reason of the choice of this period of the Art by the artist (Mr.Walter Gilbert) to commemorate those who have fallen and for the intimateexpression of the love with which their names and remembrance are regarded bythe employees of the Gas Department, will be apparent to all. For just as the Greekset up the artist's expression of the beauty in the place of honour and had italways before his eyes in the home, so the employees of the Gas Department haveerected an emblem of the immortal beauty of the sacrificing love of their comradesfor the country and their fellows and have placed it in the centre of their dailylabours in order that the sacrifice may never be forgotten." Both sources say, "TheMemorial is designed in cenotaph form, crowned with a figure of Britannia, holdingin one hand a little Nike or Victory alighting on a globe, and in the other, emblems(the bay and the fir) of the valour and steadfastness of her sons." Gilbert wasrecommended by Sir Whitworth Wallis F.S.A., Keeper of the Museum and Art

Gallery, and his model was approved on 19th April 1920. The bronze figure wascast by Martyns and the base installed on 24th October 1921. (Birmingham GasDepartment Magazine, Vol. X No. 1 December 1921, p.180). This represents,therefore, the first known commission arranged by Gilbert (and, of course,modelled by an unacknowledged Weingartner) for Martyns.


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21. WAR MEMORIAL, TROON. Unveiled November 1924. Height 22 ft..TheMemorial faces the sea and Britannia is holding out the palm to those who areresting in and beyond the seas. Donald Gilbert associated in the execution. Thefigure holds a winged Victory in her left hand. The monument is very similar tothose at Crewe and Morley. 10 ft.high weighing 26 cwts.

22. CREWE. CREWE WAR MEMORIAL. 20 ft. high. This is located in the centre ofCrewe, facing East. Britannia carries a palm in her right hand and a trident in herleft. 10' high 26 cwt.It is very similar to the memorials at Troon and Morley. GeneralSir Ian Hamilton unveiled the Memorial on 14th June 1924. The memorial cost1,600 which was raised by public subscription and a generous donation form therailway company. Around 15,000 people attended the unveiling ceremony. Amessage posted on the internet by Crewe and Nantwich Borough Council on 17 th February 2005 announced: The Borough Council has today been informed by theDepartment of Culture, Media and Sport that as of the 16th February 2005 theWar Memorial in Market Square, Crewe is listed Grade II as a building of SpecialArchitectural and Historic Interest. Commenting on the listing, Councillor SteveHogben, the Borough Council's Portfolio Holder for the Local Economy said: TheBorough Council has consistently recognised the importance of the War Memorialto Crewe in terms of its commemorative significance, sculptural content andrelevance to the people of the Borough. To that extent its listing is to be welcomedand in common with all the many listed buildings and structures in the Borough,its preservation and protection will be respected. The emerging proposals for theremoval of the War Memorial and its re-erection in the Market Square areconsistent with that approach. The Council's resolve to enhance the War Memorialand provide an appropriate, prominent and reverential setting which will bereinforced by news of the listing. Paul Ancell, the Borough Planning Officer, hasconfirmed that as a result of the Memorial being listed, a separate Listed BuildingConsent application will be required, which will ultimately be decided by the

Secretary of State. The following notice was subsequently posted in September2006: Representatives from Crewe and Nantwich Borough Council and The WarMemorial Veterans Working Group visited Britannia in September 2006, whist shewas being restored at the Liverpool Conservation Centre. Work to date revealed ahighly impressive and interesting restoration procedure. The cleaning process hasbeen based upon laser technology, developed from the removal of tattoos, whichdemonstrates just how gently the process is. Over time the original brown exteriorhas worn away and so she has been re-coated with an inhibitor which will preventfuture green corrosion. Then finally she has been waxed, so that water cannot restonto her surface. Originally, she is thought to have been cast in about twenty


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pieces, although she will be restored in one piece reducing possibilities of damagefrom future corrosion. Restoration completion is planned for end of September2006. The difference between the before and after work is quite staggering, yousoon forget just how the green corrosion had effected her. The process has been aninteresting one, as earlier cleaning involved use with abrasive chemicals. With thisprocess there are no liquids involved, no chemicals and no scrubbing or abrasivesubstances, persevering Britannia and resorting her to her former glory for many

years to come.

23. MORLEY. MORLEY WAR MEMORIAL. Unveiled 21st May 1927. 22 ft. highwith plinth. Britannia carries a trident in her right and a kneeling male archaicVictory in her left. This monument is very similar to those at Crewe and Troon.

24. MONS. WAR MEMORIAL TO THE VTH (ROYAL IRISH) LANCERS, Hotel deVille, Mons. Gilbert says: "Height 10ft. 6in.". "E.J. May, Architect"."St. George and St. Patrick". "St. Patrick and his Chaplain were passing from onepart of Ireland to another when they heard that assassins were lying in wait for

them - the assassins waited all day but saw nothing except the passing of a deerand a hind. The Royal Irish Lancers were in Mons at the time of the Retreat butescaped and returned on Armistice Day. The panel below records the return of theVth Lancers to Mons on Armistice Day welcomed by the Maire and the Cur ."("Sculpture in the Garden" p. 60)

25. GLASGOW. GLASGOW CONSERVATIVE CLUB WAR MEMORIAL. Detailsunknown.

26. GLASGOW. SCOTTISH SAINTS. Figures on the wooden pulpit of the WarMemorial Chapel of the University of Glasgow. Architect Sir J.J. Burnett.1928. These represent four Scottish saints: St. Margaret, St.Columba, St. Bride,and St. Oran. Above and below them appear symbols associated with them: thebook, the dove, the lamp, and the Celtic cell. There is a figure on the newel-post ofthe pulpit stair representing the Sower, sowing the seed of the Word.

27. LIVERPOOL. ECCLESTON PARK WAR MEMORIAL, LIVERPOOL.Height 21 ft.."The laurels of the sons are watered from the hearts of themothers"."The young mother placing the laurel at the feet of the son, who, by hisfoot on the Prussian helmet, is crushing the Prussian by his morale." Thememorial is still in place, behind railings and a locked gate. The surrounding arenow much overgrown.


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28. LIVERPOOL. NEWSROOM WAR MEMORIAL. Now located at Exchange Flags,Liverpool. Whitaker p. 302: "The elaborate memorial for Liverpool Exchange issurmounted by Britannia in protective stance with an arm about a child, belowwhich troops are poised vigilantly around a field gun. To the side, a nurse supportsthe head of a wounded soldier. The whole is a masterpiece of the art of bronzecasting and the ability of sculptor and foundryman to work together to producelasting memorials of the age."

29. LIVERPOOL. LIVERPOOL MASONIC WAR MEMORIAL, Masonic Hall, 22 HopeStreet, Liverpool.

30. LIVERPOOL. SIDE FIGURES, WAR MEMORIAL REREDOS, LIVERPOOLCATHEDRAL.

31. LIVERPOOL. BRONZEWORK ON CENOTAPH, WAR MEMORIAL CHAPEL,LIVERPOOL CATHEDRAL.

32. LIVERPOOL. 55th DIVISION MEMORIAL, SOUTH CHAPEL, LIVERPOOLCATHEDRAL.


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33. LIVERPOOL. THE GREAT REREDOS, LIVERPOOL CATHEDRAL . 65 ft. high,48 ft. wide.Parkes: "In order to emphasise the value attached by the architect tothe masonic structure of the reredos, the sculpture of the four panels on eitherside of the Crucifixion relief - the main feature of the reredos - is developed in a flatbut unobtrusive plane, and the decision in the composition obtained by cuttingdeeply into the stone to complete the sense of structure. These panels are in morethan one respect the most striking plastic features of the whole reredos, and theirworkmanship is admirable. They add greatly to the epic character of theconception, and the artists, recognising that something more than technical skilland clever arrangement of form is required for complete aesthetic satisfaction,tried throughout to arrive at the simplest form of poetic expression without falsearchaism or any manner or fashion of a past age or affectation of the present, andin this they have been completely successful."

The Sculpture Group on the extreme left is The Nativity, and that on the extremeright The Resurrection. Parkes: "These great piers are flanked left and right ontheir outer sides by superimposed arches supporting two tabernacles as wingswith panels 4 ft. square of the Nativity and Resurrection. In the former the artisthas depicted childlike joy and interest in the life just opening, and in the latter themost mysterious and wonderful silence when Christ passes through the door in ahushed world, which makes the completion of his scheme - enclosing it on eitherside - the beginning and the end." "The Nativity": 4 ft. square. (One of two panelson either side of the reredos). Photos: "Sculpture in the Garden" Gilbert &Weingartner p.4. Caption: "The joy of young life opening out." (A plaster cast of theoriginal clay model is on the north wall of Hanbury church, Worcestershire.) TheResurrection": 4 ft. square. (One of two panels on either side of the reredos).Photos: "Sculpture in the Garden" Gilbert & Weingartner p.4. Caption: "The greatmysterious silence - the silent tread." (A plaster cast of the original clay model isalso on the north wall of Hanbury church, Worcestershire.) Parkes: caption to

photo's page 4: "The Nativity and The Resurrection flanking the reredos oneither side represent the first and the last action of Christ's life. The panel of TheResurrection is designed to give the emotion of great and mysterious silence."


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In the centre of the Reredos The Crucifixion dominates the design.Parkes: "Thearch over this large relief supports the vertical panel of the Crucifixion, 12 ft. by6 ft. . . . . The Christ hangs on the cross, His face marked by suffering andresignation; and neither the head, the body, nor the limbs display contortion. Thisis the central feature of the sculpture, as it is of the Christian belief, the greatenduring symbol. To many sculptors the use of relief in sculpture is anabhorrence. The artist in this case was in a difficulty, for the stipulation laid uponhim was that a real representation of the scene should be given, and not adoctrinaire one. With reverence for the thoughts of Blake, the artist assayed tosolve the difficulty, and two great shrouded figures with hands extended shut outthe light of the Countenance of the Almighty - for darkness came over the city - thefigures behind the Corpus being only partly shrouded, to indicate the tearing theVeil of the Temple, embodying both fact and symbol. The illustration is of the firstconception in the modelling clay, and many little additions were made during thecompletion of the work in the stone. The winged figures of the panel are shaped insubtle concave forms, linking up the broad flat planes of the architecture, and, tostrengthen the whole, the main feature of the group assumes a convex shape."

Caption to photo on page 6: "This panel is 12 ft. by 6 ft. in size. The greatmessengers of the Almighty (veiled because no man has seen them) shut out thelight of the Countenance of the Almighty from the city, for darkness came over it.

The figure behind the Corpus is partly veiled to represent an event which was seen- the rending of the Veil in the Temple. The figures are composed to carry the eyethrough to the centre figure of Christ."


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It is flanked on the left by The Transfiguration and The Taking Down from theCross and on the right by The Agony in the Garden and The Path to Calvary.Parkes: This imposing relief (ie The Crucifixion) is flanked by four panels, 4 ft.square, of the Transfiguration, the Agony in the Garden, the Path to Calvary, andthe Descent from the Cross, each with a richly-carved canopy. "The

Transfiguration". 4 ft. square (Top left of a set of four relief panels surrounding"The Crucifixion"). The Agony in the Garden". 4 ft. square (Top right of a set offour relief panels surrounding "The Crucifixion"). The Road to Calvary". 4 ft.square (Bottom right of a set of four relief panels surrounding "The Crucifixion")."The Deposition". 4 ft. square (Bottom left of a set of four relief panels surrounding"The Crucifixion").

Below is The Last Supper. Parkes: "Within the piers are the massed sculptures;at the base is the altar, and from the table-level a wide arch rises, enclosing thelongtitudinal panel, 14 ft. by 7 ft., of the Last Supper. Christ stands in the midst ofeleven of the apostles, the living factor and abiding interest of the Church today.Portraying the scene as he imagines it might have been 2,000 years ago, the artisthas set down the living emotion as it affects the modern temperament, not as itwas treated by Da Vinci, as a great dramatic incident, rendered with unerring andmighty art. It is a more analytical method, with a more intimate touch. Christ,after the second supper (the paten is in the cup), is about to leave them until Hecalls, and when He refuses their plea that they might accompany Him, the aweand the solemnity of the occasion dawn on them, and they feel something of thepain and a forecast of the martyrdom the future holds for them, and the sadnessand sublimity of it all overwhelm them. This is the living spirit of the Churchtoday, and so that nothing shall distract the emotion of the communicant at thealtar, the artist has left the stool of Judas vacant; the seeker after materialadvantage has gone." Caption to photo on p. 4 of Parkes: "The scene is describedby the sculptor as follows:- Just before they go out into the Garden, Christ tellsthe Apostles that He is about to leave them, and an awful loneliness dawns uponthem as they feel subconsciously the pains and martyrdom in store for them. Thisperiod is chosen so that nothing should disturb the emotion of the communicant,for Judas by this time had left, and his absence is suggested by the vacant stool."


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The Reredos is flanked by life-size single figures of Abraham, Isaiah, Melchizedek,Aaron, Jeremiah, and David. Parkes: "Two piers of the full height with doublepinnacles bear three figures each of Abraham, Isaiah, Melchizedek, David,

Jeremiah, and Aaron. The artists have succeeded in carrying the architect'sstructural expression through the sculpture, and the perpendicular lines of themouldings are carried into the draperies of the figures, which are placed undercanopies in niches, and supported by corbels surmounted by two pinnacles, eachwith rich decoration. The entire interest is concentrated round the heads of thefigures, which are about life-size, in full sympathy in shape and intention with thecanopies. The poses of Abraham and David, the two highest figures, are essentialsin the scheme of the artists, as directing the eye to the main feature, theresignation of the Crucified, and all the figures emphasise the designer's intentionin setting out the proportion of the spaces. Abraham". (One of a series of six)"about life-size". "Isaiah". (One of a series of six) "about life-size". Melchizedek".(One of a series of six) "about life-size". "Aaron". (One of a series of six) "about life-size". Jeremiah". (One of a series of six) "about life-size". "David". (One of a seriesof six) "about life-size".

Other items include:-

"Figure Holding Wheat"Figure Holding Grapes""The Word" (Carved twice).A small figure over The Last Supper.""Angel with the Handkerchief of St. Veronica". 4 ft.10 in, high (One of a pair)"Angel with the Pillar and Cords of the Passion". 4 ft. 10 in. (One of a pair)"Little Messenger of the Gospel". 3 ft. 2 in. high (One of a pair)"Little Messenger of the Gospel". 3 ft. 2 in. high (One of a pair)

The Great Reredos of Liverpool Cathedral" by Kineton Parkes (from "TheArchitectural Review" August 1924) says: "The satisfying design, its setting andarrangement, and its organic incorporation in the main structure of the cathedral,is the work of the architect, Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, R.A.; the conception andcomposition of the figure sculpture is due to Walter Gilbert, obsessed by the ideathat sculpture is living thought expressed with simple dignity on a basis ofwell-defined and governed purpose; the modelling of the figures has beenaccomplished by Gilbert's colleague, Louis Weingartner. The two have worked inclose and constant relation for twenty-four years, and the plastic activities of thelatter have allowed of the former's concentration on the imaginative side, not onlyof the sculpture itself, but, what is of the utmost importance, its masonicstructure. In the modelling Gilbert and Weingartner were actuated by the spirit ofthe Gothic plastic artists, and this spirit has been retained in the cutting in Woolersandstone by Arthur Turner of H.H. Martyn and Son, Cheltenham, and his staff,under the direct supervision and control of Walter Gilbert.

"The architect in his desire for a tone effect used a lighter Wooler stone than theRuncorn and Woolton stone of the general structure. The effect is excellent, andthe unification complete, helping even more clearly to emphasise that Gothic is amatter of co-operative craft and not the outcome of the studio. This is the principleon which the success of this considerable modern example depends. The deepsubtleties of the studio were not desired, but rather the unsophisticated outlookand craftmanship of the artist who works for the joy of the thought and feeling hecan impart to matter in order to make it live, and not for the indulgence of acomplicated, often artificial, and sometimes perverted, technique.


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"A valuable and unique opportunity was afforded by this reredos for demonsratingthe true misssion of architecturally applied sculpture. . . . . It is the fabric that hasto be thought of as a whole; not only its structure, but its mentality, itssignificance. The sculptor must make his key the same as the architect's - thesame tone and feeling for flat planes and convex and concave surfaces; the samerigidity of perpendicular or horizontal line; the same spacing of feature, so as toachieve the satisfying balance; the consummation of the desired rhythm. Thesethings have been thought of by the fabricators of this fine reredos, and have beenvery largely realised. It is a homgeneous and satisfying whole, for its makers haveworked as one spirit to make it so.

"The reredos was four or five years in the making; it rises some 65 ft. from thefloor, and is 48 ft. wide.

* * * * * * *

"The aspects from which such a work of modern architectural sculpture are to beviewed are numerous: the religious, to state again the Christian faith and renew

reverence and veneration for its tenets; the pictorial, to fix the attention of theworshipper; the symbolistic, to supply food for meditation and conjecture; thenaturalistic, to bring together the sacred secret, and the commonplaces of life. Onthe other side, the artistic: the points of view of design, of decoration, of craft-work,of inspiration. Finally, the spirituality of the whole, without which any work of artof the kind must fail. I think that architect, artists, and craftsmen have not failedin reaching to some considerable degree of success in all these directions, and thatthis new reredos at Liverpool is a great monument, of fine proportions, truenobility of statement, and honest craftsmanship."

34. LIVERPOOL. ALTAR RAIL, LIVERPOOL CATHEDRAL. 1921-1924.


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"When I set out to conceive the compositions for the little figures of the TenCommandments required in the altar rail of Liverpool Cathedral, I realised for thefirst time how very closely interwoven the Commandments were with one another -how difficult it was to individualise them with a different conception for eachCommandment." (From "Essentials of Good Craftsmanship in Metalwork" in "TheArchitectural Review" Vol. 59. 1926. pp. 147-150). Parkes: "Forming an adjunct tothe reredos is the altar rail, designed by the architect, the subject and figures leftto Walter Gilbert and Louis Weingartner. It is a beautiful work, cast in bronze atMartyn's foundry. There are figures of the Commandments, 14 in. high, eachrepresenting a draped female, with appropriate gestures and emblems. They aregently modelled and treated with a lighter touch than the sculptures of thereredos, such as the old Gothic masters sometimes indulged in; the great spiritualepic of the reredos stills all but the most profound emotion, but theCommandments, as treated here, are a reminder of the continuing human story.

The figures are essentially naturalistic, but with a distinct decorative value in thedraperies and accessories. The rail itself is dignified in its simplicity, and isconsonant with the reredos, to which it gives support." The figures are, in fact,entirely the work of Weingartner. "Thou shalt have no other gods before me".Bronze. 14 in. high. "Thou shalt not make to thyself any graven image". (Photo:

"Sculpture in the Garden" Gilbert & Weingartner p. 53. Caption: "Banning thegolden calf".) Bronze. 14 in. high. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thyGod in vain". Bronze. 14 in. high. "Thou shalt keep holy the Sabbath day". (Photo:"Sculpture in the Garden" Gilbert & Weingartner p. 53. Caption: "The evening andthe morning were the seventh day - the praise to the Almighty for the rest after thelabours of the week - The Angelus".) Bronze. 14 in. high. "Honour thy father andthy mother". Bronze. 14 in. high. "Thou shalt not kill". Bronze. 14 in. high. "Thoushalt not commit adultery". "The Great Reredos of Liverpool Cathedral" (repr. fr."The Architectural Review" August 1924) p.3. Caption: "The VIIth Commandment,Thou shalt not commit adultery, shows the left-hand figure tightening the girdleof chastity, and rebuking the temptation of darkness as represented by theserpent, the apple, and the stars." Bronze. 14 in. high. "Thou shalt not steal"."Sculpture in the Garden" Gilbert & Weingartner p. 55. Caption: "I would not if Icould". "The Great Reredos of Liverpool Cathedral" (repr. fr. "The ArchitecturalReview" August 1924) p.5. Caption: "The VIIIth Commandment, Thou shalt notsteal, shows the right-hand figure rejecting what does not belong to it". "TheArchitectural Review" Vol. 59 Jan-Jun 1926 p. 153. Bronze. 14 in. high."Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour". Photo: "Sculpture in theGarden" Gilbert & Weingartner p. 55. Caption: "Closing the lips and withdrawingthe garment from the scandal, which is as strong as a castle and as devastating asa dragon's breath"."The Great Reredos of Liverpool Cathedral" (repr. fr. "TheArchitectural Review" August 1924) p.5. Caption: "The IXth Commandment, Thoushalt not bear false witness, etc., shows the left-hand figure guarding the mouth,and drawing her skirt away from scandal, as strong as a castle and as devastatingas a dragon's breath." "The Architectural Review" Vol. 59 Jan-Jun 1926 p. 153.

Bronze. 14 in. high. "Thou shalt not covet". "The Great Reredos of LiverpoolCathedral" (repr. fr. "The Architectural Review" August 1924) p.5. Caption: "TheXth Commandment, Thou shalt not covet, shows the right-hand figurerepudiating covetousness." Bronze. 14 in. high.

35. MALVERN. CARVING ON THE MEMORIAL LIBRARY, MALVERN COLLEGE.Architect: Sir Aston Webb and Son.


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36. BURNLEY. BURNLEY WAR MEMORIAL, Towneley Park, Todmorden Road,Burnley. Listed on p. 45 in "Sculpture in the Garden" Gilbert & Weingartner, withnote "20 ft. high". Unveiled and dedicated on Sunday 12 December 1926. InGloucester Records Office (D6345 bundle 1/1) there is a letter dated 05.12.1926from Gilbert to H.H. Martyn & Co. as follows: "Dear Mr. Turner, . . . Please thankMr. Turner sen. and Mr. Winstone for all the care taken with the stonework of theBurnley Group and also I should like to thank Mr. Edwards for the care he hastaken with the bronze figures." The Order of Service for the dedication contains thefollowing description, probably written by Gilbert: "DESCRIPTION OF THE WARMEMORIAL. This Memorial, designed and sculptured by Mr. Walter Gilbert, ofBirmingham, is placed in Towneley Park, Burnley, adjoining Towneley Hall, thehistoric seat of the Towneley and O'Hagan families and now the property of theCorporation of Burnley. The Memorial takes the form of a Cenotaph, the plinthbeing of granite, the side figures, each about 8 feet high, of bronze, and theCenotaph proper of Portland stone to a height of 20 feet. The front of the Cenotaphbears the following inscription:- THIS MONUMENT WAS ERECTED IN MEMORYOF THE MEN OF BURNLEY WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES FOR THEIR FELLOWCOUNTRYMEN IN THE GREAT WAR, 1914-1918. Rising from the plinth theCenotaph is plain until near the top where it is beautifully sculptured into threefigures, representing the Navy, Army and Air Force.


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At each side of the Cenotaph is a female figure, the one on the left representing themother bringing the wreath, and the other on the right representing the sister orwife bringing the garlands./The Cenotaph merging above into the three figures ofsailor, soldier and airman is intended to express the emotion felt in the humanheart at the ideals of those who have fallen in the Great War. The mother,overwhelmed in this emotion, places a wreath in memory of her son at the foot ofthe Cenotaph, and, as she stoops, the Cenotaph shapes itself in her heart into thefeatures of her son. By her side and touching her is the rosemary bush forremembrance and under the rosemary is the cricket bat and ball, for the son is theboy to the mother always - the boy who never grows up in her eyes, and who isloved and remembered best in the days when he was mothered by her. To the

sister or the wife bringing garlands and the palm of victory, the memory of thecourage and prowess of the man fills her heart. She rejoices with shining eyes thather man was a man amongst men. The prayer which is uttered in their hearts andenshrined on the Cenotaph MAKE THEM TO BE NUMBERED WITH THY SAINTSIN GLORY EVERLASTING is the expression of their profound love. . . . TheSculptor has endeavoured to conceive a Memorial that shall breathe nothing ofslaughter, but only of duty fulfilled and, by fulfilment of duty, the comfort andthankfulness brought to those who remain." The two bronze figures representWeingartners swan song, and the stone Donald Gilberts dbut.37. TWO LANTERNS. Building of Metropolitan Vickers Electrical Co.Ltd. 1926. InGloucester Records Office (D6345 bundle 1/1) there is a letter dated 05.12.1926from Gilbert to H.H. Martyn & Co. as follows: "Dear Mr. Turner,/I have arrangedwith Mr. Arnold the fixing of the two Lanterns at the Metro Vick Building. . . ."

There is a photo of one of them in "The Architectural Review" Vol. 59. 1926. p. 159:"An Electric-Light Fitting. Craftsmen: Harcourts Ltd. (Metropolitan VickersElectrical Co. Ltd.) under the direction of Walter Gilbert. Architect: A.N. Prentice."Current whereabouts unknown.

38. BURNLEY. BRONZE BUST OF EDWARD STOCKS-MASSEY. Towneley Hall,Burnley. 1927. 25" high including plinth, 17" high, 12" wide, 7" deep.


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39. BURNLEY. BRONZE BUST OF LADY O'HAGAN. Towneley Hall, Burnley. 1928.25" high including plinth, 17" high, 12" wide, 7" deep. These busts are probablyboth by Donald, since he continued his career as a portrait-modeller after hisfathers retirement. They were made after an unsatisfactory conclusion to Waltersattempt to re-habilitate Alfred Gilbert, the latters bust-portraits having beenrejected by the patrons.

40. LONDON. LAMP-STANDS AT ENTRANCE TO SELFRIDGES, Oxford Street,London. LAMP-STAND WITH HOUNDS. Pair. Date unknown but preceding thetransition to Donalds art deco style. This work may also include LAMP-STANDWITH LION-MOTIFS, location and date otherwise unknown.

WORKS IN ASSOCIATION WITH DONALD GILBERT AND MARTYNS OFCHELTENHAM


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41. LONDON. CAST-IRON GRILLES AND BRONZE PANELS. Nos. 101-111 HighSt., Kensington. (Derry and Toms department store). Built 1929-31. Work byGilbert 1931. Most, if not all, of this work is still extant, and consists of decorativeiron grilles and bronze fascia-panels. IRON-WORK: 38 grilles of varying sizes.

These are ranged in apertures along the fifth (top) floor on the exterior of thebuilding, and in three "pavilions" ranging from the first to the top floor. Nine of thetop-floor grilles are on the High-Street frontage (facing north), together with two ofthe pavilions. There are also ten top-floor grilles on the Derry-Street frontage(facing west), although, apart from those at either end of the row - which arerepeated designs - these have a simpler, more decorative motif. One of thesesimpler grilles is also on the corner of the south side of the building, and a repeatof one of the more complex designs is on the corner of the east side of the buildingwhere the top floor is clear of the adjacent frontages. The grilles on the pavilionsare also decorative rather than symbolic, featuring swallows and bats. Otherelements consist of owls and squirrels. The scheme for the three pavilions featuresin each case a long vertical grille. The principal, and most complex elements in thescheme are the nine figurative grilles in art deco style on the High Street frontage(two of which are repeated on other frontages). Each grille is different, and features

two main elements. Each of these elements is a human or fantastic creature, andthe scheme is clearly mythological. These must be what Pevsner refers-to as"zodiac reliefs", although they are not signs of the zodiac. One of the figures isholding a star, so they could be related to constellar myths. BRONZE PANELS: 6panels: (i) Bears, on the Derry Street frontage at the top of ground level to the rightof a canopy. (Each of the "pavilions" has a canopy beneath it). (ii) Fountain, hindsand birds, on the wall to the right of the vestibule behind the canopied frontage.

The fountain is in the centre, with the creatures "radiating" from it. This does notappear to be fixed to the wall and is probably a survival of the original interiorscheme, now modified. (iii) Birds and hinds (ie. one central group of hinds, withtwo groups of birds on either side.) This is under the canopy of the west pavilion ofthe High Street frontage. (iv) Mammals (ie. six groups of different animals). This issituated to the left of the canopy of the east pavilion. (v) Birds (ie. seven groups ofan ibis-type bird.) This is under the canopy of the east pavilion. (vi) Reptiles (ie. sixgroups of different reptiles). This is to the right of the canopy under the eastpavilion. (iv), (v), and (vi) clearly constitute a group around what was originally themain entrance to the building, but in terms of design there is a relationshipbetween (iv) and (vi), (ii) and (iii), and possibly between (i) and (v). In a letter to thefoundry manager Arnold Edwards dated 18.04.1933, Gilbert wrote: "Returning toLondon this evening I received a copy of "The Architect and Building News" April14th with notice of Derry and Toms. Just before I went away I received a telephonemessage from the Editor asking me for photographs of the enriched panels at the


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entrance to the building by first post in the following morning that their articlewas already in the press but they would like to have illustrations of the animalpanels if I had any. I see their notice of the cast iron grilles is very incomplete itwas a pity that no photographs to send along with the others - so I have written tothe Editor a letter a copy of which I send you. I hope that they will be able tomake use of it . . . " The letter mentioned here, dated 18.04.1933, has the followingremarks: "Dear Mr. Bird, I very much appreciate your kindness in giving such goodnotice of the work entrusted to me at the above building. I notice that you verykindly refer to the big cast iron grilles in the openings on the top floor on the HighSt. and King St. elevations which I designed and executed the models of theenrichments. I should have liked to have seen the name of the founder for thiswork mentioned also viz. H.H. Martyn of Cheltenham for the grilles are so large,about 12 feet wide by 6 feet deep and they are so hefty and yet give the effect ofelegance (in keeping with the building) that the execution of them in cast iron isreally a tour-de-force of workmanship in this material. . . . "

42. LONDON. UNILEVER BUILDINGS, New Bridge Street, London. 1930-1 by J.Lomax Simpson (in collaboration with Sir John Burnet, Tait and Lorne). Work byGilbert 1931-2. The large gates with associated ornamentation have gone, but thetwo pairs of side gates and the lamps on pillars are still extant. The gates feature a

"curl" design, which, since it features in the designs over the side entrances byanother artist, may have been part of Unilever's original logo. The lamp pillarshave some figurative reliefs. The base of each pillar has three panels depicting: (i)two standing natives facing left poling a canoe laden with coconuts; (ii) a figuredressed in the lion-skin of Hercules carrying an uprooted coconut-palm in front ofdragon-serpent(s) with two heads; (iii) two figures, one (left) carrying a club andholding up a cluster of coconuts, and the other (right) stoking an oven with a long-handled shovel. On the shafts of the pillars there are oval relief-panels with arepeated design featuring (i) two exotic birds; (ii) tropical foliage and flowers; (iii) a


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standing native (facing right) poling a canoe laden with coconuts; (iv) a nativescaling the trunk of a palm-tree; (v) three negroes filling a sack.

43. LONDON. ENTRANCE(?) TO BRITISH GENERAL INSURANCE CO.,CHEAPSIDE. 1931-2. None of this work appears to be now extant.

44. LONDON. CEREMONIAL GOLD KEY TO ROYAL MASONIC HOSPITAL,HAMMERSMITH. Gold. Photos of obverse and reverse in "The Architectural Review"Vol. 74. August 1933. p. 80. Caption: "The two sides of the Golden Key with whichthe King on July 12th opened the Royal Masonic Hospital, illustrated in thisissue." The article on the same page says: "THE KEY was designed by WalterGilbert, sculptor and metal-worker, with which H.M. the King opened the RoyalMasonic Hospital, illustrated in this issue. The idea portrayed in the key is this.Aesculapius, the son of Apollo, was the god of Medicine, some say the founder,though Chiron the Centaur (Sagittarius of the Zodiac) taught him this. He isalways shown with the vase of ointment, the club and the serpent. The serpentsymbolises prudence and foresight, most necessary in the curing of disease andinjury. The Lotus is the symbol of life - the flower of the Nile, which the Egyptianlooked upon as the life-giving river. The Lotus is arranged to form golden rays of

light at the back of the head of Aesculapius, because when the child was foundafter the death of his mother Coronis, who was killed by Zeus, his head wassurrounded by golden rays of light."

45. LONDON. WORK AT THE FREEMASONS HALL. 1933. WALL-LAMPS,LAMP STANDS FOR DAIS, in the form of bulls supporting bowl at apex (modelledby Donald Gilbert).

BRONZE DOORS TO THE GRAND TEMPLE (EXTERIOR). Each door was cast inone piece 12' * 4' weighing 1 1/4 tons. There is a typescript in the Hartleburyfolder which explains the theme of this side of the doors. There is a nearly identicaltypescript in Gloucester Records Office (D6345 2/9). The two descriptions, whencollated, result in the following description: "Top two panels. With prayer andthanksgiving they brought Ark and the 7 branched candlesticks to the House ofthe Lord. Left. The vessels of gold and silver came from beyond the desert. Thestone was conveyed by oxen to Jerusalem. The stones were hewn in the quarryworked & numbered by the Giblites. Right. The weaving sheds were beyond thegreat rivers. The timber was felled in the forest of Lebanon & conveyed by floatfrom Tyre to Joppa. The metals were fused & cast in the plains of Zeradath. Thematerials were prepared so far off the better to distinguish the excellence of thecraft, for although the materials were prepared at so great a distance, when theycame to be set up at Jerusalem, the whole appeared more like the work of theGreat Architect of the Universe than of mortal hands. Wisdom, strength andbeauty are about His throne as the pillars of His Works. Concerning this housewhich thou art building if thou wilt walk in my statutes and execute my

judgements and keep all my Commandments to walk in them then will I establishMy word with thee.


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DOORS TO THE GRAND TEMPLE (INTERIOR). A photo in Hartlebury Museum hasa caption written on the reverse: "Subject The flashes from the Divine Mind to themind of man / H.V. Ashley Winton Newman FPRIBA Architects". There is atypescript in the Hartlebury folder which explains the theme of this side of thedoors. There is a nearly identical typescript in Gloucester Records Office (D63452/9). These two descriptions, also when collated, result in the followingdescription: "The Seraphs: With twain they covered their feet, with twain theycovered their heads and with twain they flew. They hide their faces with theirwings to express an innate dread of the Divine Majesty of God. Their faces areturned towards each other as an emblem of unity and concord. Seraph on the left:As an emblem of God's power, His goodness, omnipotence and eternity, the Sun isordained to arise in the East and open the day, thereby calling forth the people ofthe earth to their Worship, and exercise in the paths of virtue. Seraph on the right:

The Great Author of all hath given the Moon to govern the night - a fit season forsolemn meditation when the labours of the day are ended and man's mind isabstracted from the cares of life. The divine hand on the left: The soul of manresting in the Hand of the Creator who designing to bless man's estate on earthhath opened the Hand of His Divine Benevolence with good gifts. The hand on theright: He will weigh in the balance of Truth every action, word or thought. Thestarry girdle of Prudence. Below this the main body of the doors pictures theflashes from the Divine mind to the soul of man which inspire and comfort him in


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the passage through life. From top to bottom and left to right . First row: Taciturnity(finger to lips). Sacrifice (Soldiers of the War). Brotherhood (David and Jonathan).

Temperance (Moses & the tables of the Law. Temperance in all things). Secondrow: Hope (figure of prophet points heavens [sic] .Wheat symbol of the resurrection).Wisdom in high places (Solomon with sword of justice). Beauty (Hiram Abij withplans of Solomons Temple). Contemplation (figure with hand on beard). Third row:Fidelity (with the bound bundle). Prudence (figure with head looking both ways).

Justice (figure with sword and scales). Courage (figure pulling the tongue out ofthe dragon plucking the tongue out of evil). Fourth row: Work (the greatestblessing of God to man). Wisdom in Council (Masonry). HANDLES. The sword ofWisdom. The sword of Courage. The meaning of the swords as handles - is thatinspired by the high ideals as disclosed in the beautiful services in the Temple -the brethren leave strengthened as with a sword of wisdom and of courage whenthey leave the Temple to face the world. KNOCKER. The winged Bull - which hasits place in the ritual, is a symbol of Divine Power in the East."

46. LONDON. SCULPTURE AND METALWORK, FORMER COMMERCIAL UNIONASSURANCE BUILDING, 24 CORNHILL, LONDON. c. 1934. None of this workappears to be now extant.

47. LONDON. LONDON CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, No.'s 69-73, Cannon Street.c. 1934. The interior work has gone, but the two panels on either side of theentrance are still there. The left panel has: upper, sickle with wheat-sheaf; centre,coat of arms; lower, two cogs. The right panel has: upper, hand with 'phone,ledgers, and sealed scroll; centre, coat of arms; lower, bales. A letter from Gilbertto Arnold Edwards in Gloucester Records Office (D6345 bundle 1/2), dated10.05.1934, says: "I expect to send you the Torchcase models immediately afterWhitsuntide."

48. LONDON. SCULPTURE AND METALWORK, KINGSTON GUILDHALL, High St.,London. 1935. Architects: Sir Aston Webb & Son.

49. BERLIN. BERLIN PLAQUE. Gloucester Records Office (D6345 bundle 1/1)letter from Gilbert to Edwards dated 15.10.1935: "I have sent by Mr. Hancocks thelittle plaque which I showed you on Monday which is to go out to Berlin - pleasemake a good job of it - how heavy will it be - if it is not too heavy it can go out inthe Ambassador's bag from the Foreign Office. Finish it a light bronze - with 4small bronze dowels - Can I have it early next week sent to me in London."

50. LONG BEACH. WORK FOR THE SS QUEEN MARY. DOORS TO PRIVATEDINING-ROOM. Two hinged doors, each with the decorated handles on the doors


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to the Restaurant, and two sliding doors, with four depictions of "The Elements" ina series. There is a typescript explanation in the Hartlebury archive as follows:"The two single doors come on either side of the double doors which are enrichedwith the stories of the Ocean as known to the Ancients. These single doorssymbolise the flower-strewn lands on either side of the Atlantic and, together withthe two bronze sliding doors in the Private dining Rooms, complete the Series.Each door has for its Central Feature one of the beneficent Elements which bringto fruition and give colour to the flowering plants (a) The sun bursting through theclouds (b) The dew falling on the earth (these are on the sliding doors to the PrivateDining Rooms). (c) Summer with the gentle zephyr whispering in her ear (d) Iriswith her bow in the heavens and the shower falling from the clouds. In each grillewill be seen the stream running through the centre of the gardens with thekingfishers darting at the fish jumping to the surface of the water. The handle tothese doors is described separately."

BRONZE DOORS TO FIRST CLASS RESTAURANT. Double doors, each with adecorated handle. Six mythological themes are represented. Two photos (one close-up of "Europa and the Bull" - middle right medallion of six) in Hartlebury MuseumArchive 745 (buff envelope marked "Bromsgrove Guild. Papers re Walter & DonaldGilbert"). Work attributed on back of photo to Donald Gilbert and Walter Gilbert.(Photographer's stamp: "Stewart Bale, 13 Union Court, Liverpool L2"; in pencil:/1676-16). The Hartlebury folder includes a typescript (also in Gloucester RecordOffice D6345 2/27, but mostly missing except the last page with four lines andGilbert's signature with the date "Feb. 1936") explanation as follows: "The handlesare an important feature in the design of these doors and a certain Chinoiserie hasbeen deliberately inserted in the work. A Chinese mandarin was always a greatgentleman - most regardful of his own person and most courteous to his guestsand those whom he wished to honour. The closer he came to his person the moreelegant and careful he was in his dress and in his choice of the things he handledpersonal things like the girdle of his robe, his fan, his sword or his writing pen; he

was equally exquisite in his choice of a sculptured piece of jade which he couldcontemplate in his hand whether it was for his own delight or a gesture to hisguest. In like manner the artist has made, by means of the handles to these doors,a personal gesture of homage to the Queen Mary and to the Queen Mary's guests -through the refinement of thought and of workmanship in that offered to the touchof their hands . . . These handles reach out to them to charm them with poeticwelcome. They are clothed in symbolism which is the artist's language. Theswallows are the birds of passage which cross the seas under sunny skies, and arethe harbingers of Summer. The pillars of the handles are enriched with cloud


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forms like the fleecy cirrus clouds which flit across the blue skies on a summerday. The beetle or scarab - the seal of the Pharaoh, and the emblem of goodfortune. The goldfinch flitting from flower to flower and bush to bush explains itself- the Ancients pictured the nymphs in this manner. Aesthetically the handlesbridge the grilles with their interest and give the whole door a most importantaccent, which cannot lightly be disregarded. The double doors in the 1st ClassRestaurant represent the Ocean and some of the ancient legends of famousvoyages and incidents which took place on the Sea. The incidents selected arethese - (1) Castor and Pollux - the great twin brethren, the guardians of sailors. (2)

The Sirens - with the golden voices which Ulysses and his comrades heard on theVoyage of the Argonauts. (3) The nymphs of the Gardens of the Hesperides - famedfor the voyage of Hercules and Nereus in their search for the golden apples. (4)Europa and the Bull and the voyage across the Hellespont. (5) Latona and herchildren, Diana and Apollo driven forth and taking refuge on the sea. (6) Thebirth of Aphrodite off the Coast of Cyprus. At the foot of the grilles are (7) A

Triton (8) Nereid, both sea dwellers, rising from the foam. Scattered about thegrilles are various subsidiary motifs - seababies riding on dolphins and swingingon the whiskers of an angel fish. In still more subsidiary pieces are birds allintroduced intentionally and with a full meaning. (a) A swan in flight (b) An eagle.

Both these are emblems of Jupiter, the chief of all the gods. The eagle aloof, silentand regnant. The swan graceful, proud, master in his household and gallant andfiercely persuasive in his loves - direct and straight in his voyage through the air.

The cormorant and penguin - emblems of the north and south Atlantic. TheKingfisher - always associated in the minds of the Ancients with halcyon days - thedays of sunny, happy voyages. Other birds express the joy and pleasure, and thestrange sights those who go down to the sea in ships experience."

DECORATIVE GREEN GLASS PANEL. Animal motif. Gilbert developed radicallynew designs of moulded frosted glass manufactured by the Birmingham firm of

John Walsh in a concerted attempt to keep abreast of continental innovations.

51. LONDON. NO. 1 ALBEMARLE STREET, LONDON. c. 1936.

52. LONDON. CARVED DOORS, CORNHILL INSURANCE CO., 32 CORNHILL,LONDON E.C. 3. See Arthur Byron "London Statues", Constable and Co. Ltd.,London, 1981, pp. 75-6: "The very ornate pair of mahogany doors at 32 Cornhill isdivided into eight panels, each deeply carved and each depicting scenes from thelong history of Cornhill. At the bottom right, two Bronte sisters, one carrying anumbrella, are shown in the publishing house of Smith Elder and Company talkingto William Makepeace Thackeray (1811-63) who is holding his top hat and in theother hand a book . . . . The doors were carved by B.P. Arnold. Arnold was, ofcourse, the technician at Martyns responsible for transferring the design of theclay model to wood.


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53. JOHANNESBURG. SCULPTURE, BRONZE DOORS ETC., HEAD OFFICE,ANGLO-AMERICAN CORORATION OF SOUTH AFRICA, 44 MAIN STREET,

JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA. 1938. Architect: F. Lorne, F.R.I.B.A., of Sir John Burnet Tait and Lorne, Architects. The following information is in a printedbooklet: "A description of the new Headquarters for the Anglo-AmericanCorporation of South Africa, Limited, 44, Main Street, Johannesburg".(Unpaginated. 24 pages and one pull-out photograph):- " . . . building operationswere commenced in January, 1938. . . On his first visit to South Africa, Mr. Lornerealised how rich South Africa is in flora and fauna, and how little this greatwealth had been tapped in the decoration of South African buildings. He wastherefore determined that whatever decoration should take its place in theembellishment of the new building should be African in character. In this he hasbeen most encouragingly aided by the artists - Mr. Walter Gilbert, who executedall the bronze decorative work in doors, windows etc.; Mr. Donald Gilbert, whoexecuted the plaster models for the stone carving; Mr. Jan Juta, who carried outthe etched and coloured glass large window in the main entrance hall; andDr. Kirchoff, who supervised the whole of the stone carving on the building. Noteson the Decorative Work and the Artists. In designing the decorative accents for the

building, Mr. Walter Gilbert followed the principle that traditional ornamentshould be put on one side, because its decoration and ornament belong to Europeand would be entirely without meaning in South Africa. The flora and fauna inSouth Africa to-day furnish an inspiration to the artist exactly the same as thatwhich impelled the artists in the Old World to declare ornamentally the beautywhich they saw around them. By shaping the ornament for the decoration of thisbuilding from that which is seen around, and by declaring the origin and purposeof this building in the sculptors' language, it is hoped that this will help to create anational sculptural ornament of South Africa - a decorative sculpture which willbe born of the observation of the elegance, beauty and virility of bird, beast andflower of South Africa to remind the South African of his good fortune and hischoice possessions. The following are the themes devised:- Decorative Bronze atthe principal entrance doors in Main Street. Here is a bronze glazed screen ofseven doors, bound together by heavy bronze cresting formed of ornament developfrom South African flowers. In the centre is a symbolic figure of Prudence, three-quarter life size. Prudence holds in her hand a bridle and by her side is the symbolof Wisdom, the serpent, and nestling at her feet is the dove. In the doors will befound emblems of the sun, the symbol of south Africa's prosperity and wealth, theEland and the Giant Sable Antelope, symbols of her great and unusualpossessions. The Storks and the Swallows, flying outwards, symbolise her traveland trade with other parts of the world. In the secondary places in these doors theornament is formed of various flora. The handles to the doors are symbols of Powerand Beauty, shown by the Eagle. Decorative Bronze in doors in Marshall andFerreira Streets. The design of these doors is based on the delicate ribbing seen inthe south African butterfly wing, and where the rich accents of colour occur in the

wing some of the beautiful and colourful flowers, birds and fish peculiar to SouthAfrica bring this suggestion to the mind:- The pine and the red coloured widowbird. The plums and Verreaux's glossy starling. The white-crested egret. TheCompass Medussa. The Prince of Wales heath, with the hoopoe insect eater.Orothamnus zeyheri, wild flower of the Cape, with parrot. Oil nut-bearing palm,with monkey. The kaffir tree and swallow-tailed butterflies. The river perch or

Tilapia. In the overdoors are the subjects:- Mining, Commerce, agriculture, Fruit-Farming - industries of South Africa making for the happiness and prosperity ofthe country. The Large Stone Sculpture Bas relief on the front of the Tower (overthe main entrance door and window). It will be noted that the line governing the


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design of this bas relief is shaped as the South African continent thrusting out intothe Southern Seas. The male figure in the centre of the scheme reaching upwardand pulling the lightning from the skies symbolises the human energy whichbreaks the ground with electric power to get the treasures concealed therein. Thesetreasures, when recovered, are conveyed across the ocean to all parts of the world,symbolised by the sea nymphs. The Stone Bas Relief on the Back of the Tower inMarshall Street. Here Mercury, the messenger of the Gods, is portrayed hurlinghimself through the clouds with a message from the Old World to those doingbusiness in this building in the New World, symbolising the speed of moderncommunication. The Stone Corbels to the Flag Poles/The bosses on which thevolutes of these stone corbels is built is founded on the South African flower, thegiant protea."

54. EDINBURGH. BRONZE DOORS TO ST. ANDREW'S HOUSE, EDINBURGH.

South of Regent Road. Architect Thomas S. Tait of John Burnet, Tait & Lorne.Built 1936-9. Doors signed and dated 1938. The building accommodates theprincipal departments of the Scottish Office. Relief. Cross of St. Andrew inbackground; lower centre depiction of Jesus calling St. Andrew with inscription,"And I will make you Fishers of Men"; also depictions of St. Ninian, St. Kentigern,St. Columba and St. Magnus. Gloucester Records Office D6345 bundle 2/27contains a typesript explanation of the Doors (4 pages, signed) and a photo.Extracts from this as follows:- "The main theme in the scheme is The Divine call toSt. Andrew, patron Saint of Scotland, Follow me and ye shall be fishers of men.Incorporated in the doors are:- St. Ninian. St. Kentigern. St. Columba. St. Magnus.


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These men, following the Divine precept, came to Scotland and became likewisefishers of men; they shaped the destiny of Scotland they welded the tribes bytheir wise statesmanship - they were the counsellors of kings they founded seatsof learning and guided the people to great ideals. They were the forerunners of thewise government of the people. . . . . . . . The tradition of St. Ninian the friend of St.Martin of Tours remains in Galloway to this day and in the doors I haveincorporated the little Church which still stands in a cornfield, close to CruggletonCastle, and not very far from the spot, where the Church of St. Martin once stood,and from where St. Ninian landed, as an emblem of the earnestness of this fisherof men. . . . . . The branch of fir symbolises austerity and inflamibility ( sic ) ofpurpose. . . . . . It is said of St. Columba that he had the face of an angel . . . Onhis return to Ireland, we are told that he secretly made a copy of the Psalter of St.Finian - It was this act which caused a conflict in which 3,000 lives were lost. Aspenance St. Columba was ordered into exile and not to return until at least a likenumber of souls were led to salvation by his teaching. . . . . In Ireland in thosedays which I have touched upon, the tradition grew that it was the white thornwhich crowned the brow of the Crucified that had blossomed on St. Andrew's dayand was the staff which blossomed in the hands of St. Joseph of Arimathea,signifying that he had completed his journey at Glastonbury with the Holy

Grail.The white thorn is placed in blossom by St. Columba's side as a symbol thatthe years of exile commenced in pain were now ended in the glory of a tasktriumphantly fulfilled. . . . . . St. Kentigern gained the love of all around him, andwhen he died his devoted disciples, who had given him the title of St. Mungo theWell-beloved, laid him to rest in the beautiful Church in the city he had founded.

The rowan is used, for under the branches of this tree in old days in the north,tradition says councils were held and judgements among the people were given.Later in time and working in Northern Scotland and the Orkneys lived St. Magnus- beloved of the fishermen. His kinsmen Haco of Norway, jealous of his influenceand hating him for his departure from the traditional outlook of the Norwegianwarrior in relation to their fellowmen, slew him with an axe. Tradition says thatwherever spots of blood dripped from his head - flowers sprang up - flowers ofhope, and the promise of eternal life. In the lower portion of the door is portrayedman's glory in his work with nature - God's great blessing to man in the passage toand fro on the ocean of life. . . . . . ." This work is almost certainly from the hand ofDonald, who was no doubt inspired by his own Scottish ancestry (via his motherIna MacGeogh).


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55. LONDON. METALWORK AT FREEMASONS' HALL, LONDON: CASKET (OR"SHRINE") FOR ROLL OF HONOUR. 1939. There is an inscription on the casketitself: Bro: H.V. Ashley, P.G.D. / Grand Supt. of Works / Bro: F. Winton Newman /P. Asst. Supt. of Works / Architects / Bro: Walter Gilbert / M M Lodge 587 /Sculptor 1939. The Hartlebury folder includes a typescript explanation as follows:"The shrine takes the form of an altar on a boat. To the Egyptians it was thesanctuary of their deities or the resting place of their beloved ones on their voyageto the spiritual world. In place of the sculptured forms usual to such positions is acontinuous illuminated scroll inscribed with the names of the fallen brethren anddeclaring their faith in the omniscience of the Almighty and their message to theliving brethren Live thou for England and We for England died. At the fourcorners guarding the scroll are the four kneeling figures of the Services - theSoldier, the Sailor, the Airman and the Shrine. At the four corners of the Body ofthe Shrine the great winged seraphs stand ready with their trumpets to herald thearrival of the pilgrims: My sword I give to him that shall succeed me in mypilgrimage, and my courage and skill to him that can get it. My marks and scars Icarry with me to be a witness for me that I have fought this battle, who will now bemy rewarder . . . so he passed over, and all the trumpets sounded for him on theother side.. The face of the Shrine. Here are four golden figures -examples for our

life (a) Moses with the Tables of the Law. (b) Joshua at the Battle of Bethoron. Andthe sun stood still and the moon stayed until the people avenged themselves upontheir enemies. And there was no day like that before or after it that the Lordhearkened unto the voice of a man; for the Lord fought for Israel. (c) Solomon inhis wisdom. I have hallowed this house which thou hast built, to put my namethere for ever; and mine eyes and mine heart shalt be there perpetually. (d) St.George for England. Binding all these figures together is a rich band of flowers.

These flowers symbolise the country of birth, the thorns and difficulties ofthe journey through life and the fragrance of the love of their fellow brethren. In thecentre of this band of flowers the mind is reminded that the soul of man rests inthe Hand of the Almighty. The back of the Shrine. The decoration is simple - littlesprays of flowers. When the great Mogul Emperors swept into the hot plains ofIndia, they could not refrain from thinking of the country they had left behindthem. The simple sprays of flowers on Akbar's tomb at S***andra (Sijandra?) speakof the exile and the pathos of the longing of his mind for its native land and air.

The same thought clothes the tomb of Mumtaz Mahal at Agra and Shah Jehantells us, by the simplicity of its sculptured flowers, the intensity of the fragrance ofhis love. The reverence of our thoughts for the brethren is expressed in this silentlanguage. The sides of the Shrine are decorated with sprays of sweet-smellingacacia - The sacred wood of the Temple. Subsidiary decorations are formed by 1.

The shell of the Pilgrims. 2. The laurels and bays of the Warrior. 3. The rosemaryfor Remembrance. 4. The lotus of Eternal Life in the prow of the boat - conveyingthe souls on their voyage.

Materials and Execution. The material of the shrine is bronze cast, chased and

enriched with patines obtained by acids, chemicals, wax and lacquers. Thestatuettes are firegilt." The document concludes with a description of the processof firegilding. A second typescript includes the following remarks: "The shrine isdeveloped from the idea of an ark transporting the souls of the righteous on itsvoyage to the eternal regions. The idea of a voyage became so insistent in men'sminds that it demanded realistic representation and we find the early churchesshaped like a boat and the main isle leading to the most sacred place called thenave (navis, a ship). For this reason the shrine is boat-shaped - and it floats on aneven keel gliding silently through the sea of everlasting life. . . . . . . I have . . . setthe patron saints - the symbols of our country - at the four corners of the shrine.


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translation into English as follows: A. Why, rural Pan, thus seated in thelonesome shadowy wood, dost thou sound this sweet-voiced reed-pipe? B. So thatthe heifers may graze over these dewy mountains, cropping the luxurious tressesof the herbage. ANYTE. Pan is by no means the lewd drunken rascal generallysupposed - it is only in later times that he is confused with Satyrs and Sileni. Panis the friend of young birds and the lover of their songs. When he walks throughthe woods the leaves of the trees rustle whispering to him; he is the spouse of Echowho dwells in the hills; the scout; the keeper of the horned sheep; the fruitful god;the guardian of the hives and the friend of fishermen. In the sculpture herewithshewn Pan is teaching the young birds their songs - the Owl sulked and hidhimself. To this day the Owl does not sing. Height of Statue 6 ft. Material Lead.Price Two hundred guineas. Copyright reserved by the artists."

7. "THE RAPSCALLION". A bird bath - or a fountain. Height of centre portion,4 ft. 6 in.

8. "SPRING". Undraped. In a series - see below.

9. "SUMMER". Undraped. In a series - see below.

10. "AUTUMN". Undraped. In a series - see below.

11. "WINTER". Undraped. In a series - see above. Height 3 ft. 6 in. This version isa draped figure warming its hands on a fire.

12. THE LEVERETS. Height 2 ft. 9 in.

13. THE FAUN DRILLING. R.W. Gilbert has in his possession a folder titled"Sculpture . . . for the Garden" which contains the following printed photo with thecaption: "THE FAUN DRILLING (Companion to "The Leverets"). Height 3 ft. 3 in.Lead 100. Reconstructed stone." (The last is struck out by hand and writtenover is "The Faun Talking to the Leverets are companion groups or are soldseparately.")

14. DIANA WITH A HUNTING DOG. In the possession of R.W. Gilbert there is afolder: "Sculpture for the Garden" designed specifically for pictures of "Diana" and"Pan" with text specific to both works and general advertising text on back byWalter Gilbert. It contains 4 photographic prints: (a) Diana with bow and huntingdog in lead from West; (b) ditto from East; also (c) Pan (ie. as in "Pan teaching thebirds to sing") in lead from South; (d) ditto from West. The caption on the folder for


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the work in question is as follows:- "DIANA (ARTEMIS), text in Greek, thentranslation into English as follows: I am Artemis fashioned in the form that befitsme and well does the metal itself tell that I am the daughter of Zeus and of noother. Consider the maiden's audacity. Verily thou wouldst say that the wholeearth is a hunting ground too small for her. DIOTIMUS. Height of statue 6 ft.Material Lead. Price three hundred guineas. Copyright reserved by the artists."

15. DIANA. Height 6ft. 6 in. Lead 250."

16. VASE. One of a series. Height 1 ft. 6 in. Width 1ft. 6 in. Reconstructed stone.

17. HEBE. Height 6ft. Lead 150. Reconstructed stone.

18. MOWGLI AND THE BLACK PANTHER. Companion to Red Riding Hood.Height 3 ft. 9in. Lead and reconstructed stone.

19. RED RIDING HOOD. Height 3 ft. 9 in. Lead 60."

GLASS 1931-1939

1. THE TWELVE LABOURS OF HERCULES. Glass light panels:- THE NEMEANLION. Examples and pictures unlocated. THE LERNAEAN HYDRA. One plastercast, and two glass casts in Hartlebury Museum store, Boxes 1 and 2. Picture in"Catalogue . . " (see below), top row, centre. THE CERYNEIAN HIND. One glasscast in Hartlebury Museum store, Box 4. THE ERYMANTHIAN BOAR. Picture in"Catalogue . . " (see below), top row, right; repeated bottom row, left. THESTABLES OF AUGEIAS. examples and pictures unlocated. THE STYMPHALIANBIRDS. One glass cast in Hartlebury Museum store, Box 3. THE CRETAN BULL.

Two glass casts in Hartlebury Museum store, Box 2 and 4. Picture (?) in"Catalogue . . " (see below), bottom row, centre. THE MARES OF DIOMEDES.One glass cast in Hartlebury Museum store, Box 6. Picture in "Catalogue . . " (seebelow), top row, left. HIPPOLYTE'S GIRDLE. Examples and pictures unlocated.THE CATTLE OF GERYON. One glass cast in Hartlebury Museum store, Box 1.THE APPLES OF THE HESPERIDES. One glass cast in Hartlebury Museum, Box1. THE CAPTURE OF CERBERUS. Picture in "Catalogue . . " (see below), bottomrow, right.

2. Panels for elevator door, each 10 in. square.

3. CHALLENGE. In pp. 11-12 "VESTA GLASS Made at The Soho & VestaGlass Works of JOHN WALSH WALSH LTD. BIRMINGHAM ENGLAND Established1801". "Centre (Stag panel) No. GR 0A Left hand panel . . No. GR 0B Right handpanel. . No. GR 0C". "A very graceful and dignified set, particularly suitable forsmokeroom, lounge or hall. The centre piece measures (at widest parts) 9 inches

wide by 15 inches deep. The side panels (at widest parts) 5 inches wide by 14inches deep."

4. THE KILL. In pp. 10-11 "VESTA GLASS Made at The Soho & VestaGlass Works of JOHN WALSH WALSH LTD. BIRMINGHAM ENGLANDEstablished 1801". "Wounded Stag . . . No. GR 1C Hound Turning. . . No. GR 1AHound Facing front No. GR 1B". "These three pieces form an exquisite example oflow relief which displays to perfection the graceful lines of the design. The stagforms the centre piece and is equal in size to the other two which measure (at thewidest parts) 7 inches wide by 7 inches deep."


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5. IN THE CORNFIELD. In pp. 8-9 "VESTA GLASS Made at The Soho &Vesta Glass Works of JOHN WALSH WALSH LTD. BIRMINGHAM ENGLANDEstablished 1801". "Rabbit . . . . . . . . No. GR 2C Two Mice nibbling corn No. GR2B Mouse nibbling corn. . No. GR 2A". "Tranquillity is suggested by these simple

yet exquisitely moulded pieces. All three are of equal size and measure (at thewidest parts) 7 inches wide and 7 inches deep."

6. AMONG THE PINE CONES. In pp. 18-19 "VESTA GLASS Made at TheSoho & Vesta Glass Works of JOHN WALSH WALSH LTD. BIRMINGHAMENGLAND Establish

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Walter Gilbert. Works

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